Penny Draws a Secret Adventure by Sara Shephard

Title: Penny Draws a Secret Adventure

Author: Sara Shephard

Genre: Fiction

Publisher: Text Publishing

Published: 3^rd April 2024

Format: Paperback

Pages: 272

Price: $16.99

Synopsis: Little by little, Penny Lowry is making it through grade five—with a bit of help from her friends and her loveable dog, Cosmo. There’s a lot of change to deal with this year!

Penny’s newborn twin brother and sister have everyone in her family on their last nerve with their crying. Her friends, Maria and Chloe, are spending a lot of time together without inviting Penny along, making her worry they might be getting tired of her. And on top of everything, Penny and her friends discover a very old map in her attic that sends them on a wild scavenger hunt all over town in search of treasure! Can Penny get her worries about her friends and family under control, and lead her group of friends to find the hidden treasure?

~*~

As we enter the third Penny Draws book, we meet Penny Lowry as she is working her way through year five, and as her parents bring the new twin babies’ home – and ask Penny and her brother Juice Box, to name them. As Penny writes the book as a diary addressed to her dog, Cosmo. This time, Penny and her friends have found an old map in the attic, the babies won’t stop crying, and Penny feels like her friends Maria and Chloe, who are spending time together without her, are tired of her. The scavenger hunt is meant to bring them all together – but will Penny’s worries about her friends and the twins be too much?

Penny is a bit of a worrier, and she’s always got something playing at the edges of her mind. With so much out of her control, she feels like she needs to do something to bring everyone together and to help her family. As part of a series, it is one of those books that not only leads into the next one, but distinctly follows on from the previous ones and references them, and is probably best understood when read in order, though it was fairly easy to pick up what was going on with just this one as well.

Aimed at readers aged eight and older, the Penny Draws series combines text with elements of comics and graphic novels, so to appreciate the story as a whole each element needs to be read in order, as they flow that way, creating a narrative that highlights creativity and literacy, encouraging kids to explore different ways of reading.

The exploration of friendship and creativity takes centre stage, and allows each character to shine with their own hobbies and interests, whilst also exploring anxiety and worries that children may have about their family and friends, and how they connect with their community. It is a story that is filled with humour and mystery as Penny and her friends try to find out who is looking to beat them to the treasure – all whilst Penny has to deal with a new babysitter, Grace, who doesn’t seem at all that interested in doing her job properly.

The story is told through Penny’s diary as she speaks to her dog Cosmo, where she wonders what the treasure at the end of the map is, and who it belongs to. I enjoyed the way this brought them together and created a sense of belonging for them all, building on the story effectively and allowing each child to have their own interests and use their own strengths to solve the mystery – when they worked together, they were a better team. It is a book about friendship and teamwork, and being able to work out how to express yourself. I liked that Penny was able to express herself in writing, and I think it is very relatable that she can’t always tell people how she is feeling, so younger readers will understand this in themselves and those around them. I think those already reading this series will enjoy this book the most, and it may even encourage new readers to explore the series as well.